A Catalogue of TeX Macros (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 37-40
keywords: TeX, LaTeX, AMSTeX, AMSLaTeX, macros, index
abstract:
This is a catalogue of TeX macros. Its scope includes
all macros that are available via anonymous ftp or
mail-server or some similar mechanism. Commercial packages
will be included only if a full Catalogue entry is
supplied to me by the vendor.
10.pdf (39kb)

Michel Lavaud

A way to ensure the future of TeX: make its use easier on low-cost machines (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 41-52
keywords: back-end, front-end, scientific publishing, AsTeX, hyperTeX, tree, link, multi-author document, file manager, numerical computation, formal computation, worksheet, databases, email, MS-DOS, notebook, OS/2
abstract:
The PC is the cheapest computer and the most widespread
one in the scientific community. Faced with commercial
scientific word-processors that are improving steadily in
wrong directions, it is urgent to make the use of TeX
easier on the PC, to ensure its future and avoid costly
dead-ends to researchers. We have designed a program,
AsTeX, that allows to create easily multi-author
scientific documents in TeX or LaTeX on PCs. It
provides an on-line hypertext help and a multi-level
assistance in typing LaTeX code. It allows to display
and modify very easily the structure of a document, to
archive and retrieve files related to it, to perform
numerical and formal computations from the document and
include automatically the results, to create LaTeX
tables from worksheets or databases of formulas. It
processes electronic mail and files sent by list servers
for a better use of information and eases considerably the
use of anonymous ftp and archie servers by local archiving
of selected informations.
11.pdf (436kb)

Wietse Dol, Erik Frambach, Maarten van der Vlerk

4TeX: a TeX Workbench for MS-DOS PC's (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 53-56
keywords: 4TeX, fourtex, workbench, PC, MS-DOS, freeware, shareware
abstract:
TeX and all its companions offer an enormous amount of
possibilities. This is both an advantage and a
disadvantage. The advantage is that almost anything is
possible; the disadvantage is that you need detailed
knowledge of all related programs to fully exploit the
possibilities. The MS-DOS program 4TeX is an attempt to
integrate all major TeX related programs in a shell that
shields you from the tedious and frustrating job of
setting environment variables and program parameters.
12.pdf (58kb)

The Future of TeX (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 77-85
keywords: extended TeX, NTS, New Typesetting System
abstract:
TeX and the other members of Knuth's Computers &
Typesetting family are arguably amongst the most
successful examples of computer software in the world,
having been ported to almost every conceivable operating
system and attracting an allegiance that verges on the
fanatical. Development work on this family has now ceased,
and many members of the computer typesetting community are
concerned that some action should be taken to ensure that
the ideas and philosophy enshrined in TeX are not
allowed simply to fade away. In this paper, we discuss
some of the options available for perpetuating the TeX
philosophy, and examine the strengths and weaknesses of
the present TeX system. We conclude by postulating a
development strategy for the future which will honour both
the letter and the spirit of Knuth's wish that TeX,
METAFONT and the Computer Modern typefaces remain his sole
responsibility, and at the same time ensure that the
philosophy and paradigms which are the strengths of TeX
are not lost for ever by having artificial constraints
placed on their evolution.
17.pdf (126kb)

Frank Mittelbach

E-TeX: Guidelines for Future TeX extensions (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 86-94
keywords: e-TeX, guidelines, extensions
abstract:
With the announcement of TeX 3.0, Don Knuth
acknowledged the need of the (ever growing) TeX
community for an even better system. But at the same time,
he made it clear, that he will not get involved in any
further enhancements that would change the TeXbook.
TeX started out originally as a system designed to
typeset its author's own publications. In the meantime it
serves hundreds of thousands of users. Now it is time,
after ten years' experience, to step back and consider
whether or not TeX 3.0 is an adequate answer to the
typesetting requirements of the nineties. Output produced
by TeX has higher standards than output generated
automatically by most other typesetting systems.
Therefore, in this paper we will focus on the quality
standards set by typographers for hand-typeset documents
and ask to what extent they are achieved by TeX.
Limitations of TeX's algorithms are analyzed; and missing
features as well as new concepts are outlined.
18.pdf (256kb)

Frank Mittelbach, Chris Rowley

The LaTeX3 Project (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 95-100
keywords: LaTeX3
abstract:
This is a brief sketch of the LaTeX3 Project:
background, history, principles, aims and functionality.
The new version of LaTeX is, like the current version, a
freely available system for automated processing of
structured documents, formatting them to the highest
typographic standards by use of the TeX typesetting
software. Although its uses include a very large range of
published documents, the importance of its unsurpassed
ability to format mathematical formulas will not be
forgotten in producing the new version. It is being
produced by an international group of volunteers under the
technical direction of Frank Mittelbach.
19.pdf (61kb)

Virtual Fonts: Great Fun, Not for Wizards Only (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 114-119
keywords: virtual fonts
abstract:
This paper deals with virtual fonts. I would like to
present some examples of their astonishing possibilities,
taken from everyday typesetting (or almost).
21.pdf (122kb)

When TeX and METAFONT Work Together (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 124-139
keywords: METAFONT, labelling figures, figures with labels, curvilinear
abstract:
When TeX and METAFONT communicate to each other, they
can do more together than they can alone. This
presentation concentrates on two illustrations of this
principal, and urges readers to come up with more. When
TeX becomes sensitive to information passed to it from
METAFONT, it is possible to prepare diagrams and figures
using METAFONT and then to have TeX prepare labels which
can be precisely positioned within the figure. When
communication goes the other way, TeX and METAFONT can
prepare special purpose fonts which (among other things)
can be set along curved baselines. Illustrations of both
techniques are presented.
23.pdf (279kb)

International quotations (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 142-144
keywords: quotation marks
abstract:
In this article some relatively simple macros are presented
for people who need an occasional quotation mark that is
different from the default quotation marks provided by TeX.
25.pdf (28kb)

Kees van der Laan

Typesetting number sequences; FIFO and some more (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 145-148
keywords: typesetting sequences, citation lists, lists of references, linear sorting, FIFO, plain TeX
abstract:
Typesetting sequences of numerical values, represented
via symbolic names which get their values on the fly, is
dealt with. The sorting of the sequence is done by a
linear sorting algorithm, of complexity O(n2). Three or
more consecutive numbers are typeset as a range. The
objective was to encode typesetting sequences of numbers
as simple, concise, general, compatible, modular,
orthogonal, and ..., as possible in TeX.
26.pdf (68kb)

Kees van der Laan

Sorting in BLUe (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 149-170
keywords: sorting, index preparation, database handling, multiple sorting keys
abstract:
Macros for number and lexicographic sorting are supplied.
Data can originate from the copy, from file, or generated
automatically. Lexicographic sorting allows words with
ligatures and diacritical marks. Applications treated are:
sorting with respect to report generation with TeX as a
database tool, sorting and compressing index.TeX, Knuth's
index reminders file, and sorting control sequences
separately. It is illustrated by various examples that a
set can be sorted within TeX once the ordering of the
set is defined and encoded in a comparison macro, in
compliance with the parameter macro \cmp.
27.pdf (259kb)

Kees van der Laan

Manmac BLUes; or how to typeset a book via TeX (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 171-191
keywords: computer-assisted typography, manmac, style, customizing, index preparation, plain TeX, fonts
abstract:
The manmac macros are enumerated. A user's guide is
provided, and the encodings are explained. As enhancements
the writing of index reminders to the file index.TeX is
elaborated upon, and how to incorporate AMS fonts and
non-CM fonts is referred to. In the appendixes I provided
the source of manmac and my personalized report template.
With respect to the latter, I played with the idea of
formatting the MAPS specials series in this way.
28.pdf (227kb)

Kees van der Laan

AMS BLUes; professionals at work (English), MAPS 10, 1993, 192-212
keywords: computer-assisted typography, math, bibliography, markup, AMSTeX, math fonts, cyrillics, plain TeX
abstract:
The significance of the American Mathematical Society for
the TeX community at large, and more general the leading
role of the AMS in the area of professional
computer-assisted typesetting, is praised. AMS-TeX,
AMS-LaTeX, their accompanying styles amsppt.sty,
respectively amsart.sty, as well as AMS fonts are discussed.
AMS provides excellent user's and installation guides
along with the software and fonts, all in the public
domain. Despite the quality, an alternative approach -- and
in detail some alternative encodings -- are provided. A
publisher is strongly encouraged to take notice of the
computer-assisted publishing activities of this
pace-setting society. A new procedural idea with respect
to specifying and formatting bibliographies, given a
background file of all the references an author is
familiar with, is proposed to suit the author and the
publisher.
29.pdf (234kb)